VClean Life, reported to be the UK’s first entirely 100% green-cleaning facility, began operations on 12 September in Watford, marking the dry-cleaning industry’s shift to a future without perchloroethylene (PERC). The multi-million pound VClean Life hub is the first major facility in the UK to clean clothes using state-of-the-art green technology that uses mild, biodegradable detergents and outputs waste water that’s nearly pure enough to drink.

The 11,500 square foot facility will act as a gateway to the new green-cleaning revolution. VClean Life is the brainchild of Nick Harris, who formerly headed up operations at Aquascutum before founding a uniform and dry-cleaning business in 2001, which has now evolved to become VClean Life. He said: “Over the many years that we've been in the dry cleaning industry, we realised that convenience and low pricing were critical to business success, but that was at the expense of the environment. This had to change. We knew that greener options were available so we decided to bring genuine green cleaning to the masses. The laundry sector has stayed stagnant for over 50 years and it's time for change. We are the only company in the UK that can offer entirely 100% environmentally friendly, large scale, garment care, which also includes recycling water throughout the cleaning process.”